


A Means To An End

by FriendOfTheFugitive



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II
Genre: Act 1, Act 2, Act 3, Angst, Blood and Gore, Developing Relationship, F/F, F/M, Family Issues, Fluff, Headcanon, Memoirs, Platonic Kissing, Platonic Relationships, Post-Dragon Age II, Purple Hawke, Smut, Spoilers, Tag As Go, WIP
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-09
Updated: 2017-05-09
Packaged: 2018-10-30 02:11:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10866849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FriendOfTheFugitive/pseuds/FriendOfTheFugitive
Summary: Ciela Hawke's life was never easy, but once she arrived in Kirkwall, she thought her troubles were finally over, only to be proven wrong by fate - will she crack under the pressure? Or will her new friends keep her from the brink? Follow Ciela Hawke through the events of Dragon Age where she faces friendship, loss, inner strength and love as she entangles herself in one of the largest uprising Thedas has ever seen.





	A Means To An End

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! thank you so much for reading my fic! I'm hoping to keep this one up and finish it as Ciela's life, well, the life I have planned for her, really interests me. If you'd like to contact me, I can be reached on tumblr: friendofthefugitive.tumblr.com - thanks! :D

Her heart had never beat faster, even when the adrenaline from pulling pranks with her siblings or lighting fires that almost burned her hair off. This time, however, it wasn't adrenaline pumping through her veins - it was fear. Her boots slammed into the ground, picking up dirt that only broke with the sharp, pointed metal of the Darkspawn's armored toes. They screeched after them, their pointed teeth dripping with black ick that was once thought to be human blood.

She was at the back of the group, making sure her family didn't face the immediate pressure of having those vile creatures nipping at their heels. Hawke could outrun them all, but she vowed to fill her father's dying wish: _protect your family_. If any of them tripped or fell, Hawke would be there to yank them up and shove them forward - they had to keep pushing onward. The loud rolling thunder echoed around the sky, signaling the storm that drifted closer and closer to their location. It took Hawke's attention away for just a moment, but it was a moment long enough for her to dash past her mother who just couldn't run any longer.

Her breath wheezed as she doubled over, fighting to catch her barings. Short grey strands of hair fell from her loose pony-tail and into her damp face where it clung. “Mother!” Hawke gasped, almost slipping in the dirt as she redirected her momentum. “Bethany!” She screamed, leaping past her mother, opening her body in a way that made her blades look like the fangs of a cobra preparing to strike. Her darkened silver knives sliced the exposed skin on the rotted Darkspawn's flesh of its shoulder. The black ick spurted into the air around it, some splattering on Hawke's upper arms. She landed on her feet, quickly lifting her foot and kicking the armless body back towards the oncoming pack.

Her sister, at the front of their group, whipped around, following the movement of her staff. A tall wall of fire rose from the ground, blocking off the small horde from coming forward. They snarled and shrieked, brushing off their dead companion like he was nothing but dust. Carver returned to the group as well, slashing through a creature that leapt from the mountains above them, his teeth rattling as he fell into the dirt directly in front of Hawke's younger brother. Its chainmail covered head rolled into the fire after Carver gave it a good punt with his foot - a warning to the other Darkspawn.

“I can't keep running,” their mother sighed, her voice always rang with a comforting sweetness, even in the stressful situation. She couldn't seem to catch her breath, even when Hawke guided her to stand straight and let the air flow. “ _We_ can't keep running.” She repeated, remembering that they had to stick together.

Carver glared at the group of Darkspawn gathering by the wall of fire, standing at his full height as if to intimidate the mindless creatures. “It is the only option, Mother. Father and Axel didn’t die for us to die too,” he growled, his hands wrapped tightly around his greatsword which was dripping with the blood of Darkspawn.

Bethany stepped forward, her eyes locked on her twin, “you propose we keep running then? Lothering was our home, we have to go back.” She insisted, tucking her staff in its holder at her back. She kept glancing between Carver and the creatures that tested the border of her wall of heat.

“Lothering is gone! We have no home Bethany, so unless you want to keep Dad company I suggest you-!” Carver stepped towards her, his focus no longer on protecting his family but protecting his pride. He needed to win this argument, needed to make her see.

Leandra pushed Ciela’s side as she clutched her stomach, her breathing was calming but she was helpless to intervene in this fight. Hawke stepped between them, “hey!” She yelled, grabbing their attention. “I don’t care where we go but we _cannot_ stay here! So help me Andraste I will carry you all over my shoulders if I must.” She spoke aggressively, her light grey eyes switching between the two of them.

Leandra sighed, placing a hand on her eldest daughter shoulder, “your sister is right – we have to keep going.” Hawke nodded, and with that, she continued along the desert path. Her eyes never lingered in one place for too long – it was dangerous to focus on one thing. The desert was the Darkspawns’ home turf – they managed to blend in with the sand as assassins that hung on the edges of the battlefield until the right gust of wind turned them into a vicious sandstorm.

She looted a corpse for a splintering bow and decided to quickly dismantle it and put the parts inside her backpack for later crafting or selling. As she was stuffing the string into the pocket of her bag, she heard the screeching of another cluster on the hill before them. “Ciela!” Bethany gasped, beginning to cast fire bolts at the Darkspawn as Carver raced up the hill with a his teeth tightly pressed together and his sword readied in front of his chest, cutting through the air as he ran with a sharp _wiz_.

Hawke made sure her mother was far from the fire before she weaved in and out of her siblings, removing her daggers from her back and slashing them through one of their armored chests, slicing right through the rusted chainmail. Amidst the fighting, she heard more clamoring in the distance – another squabble their group wasn’t part of.

“You _can’t_ have him!” her voice was filled with passion, a force that nearly shattered Hawke’s heart – she felt that same passion when she fought to protect her father’s dying breath. Her eyes snapped upwards, and once she spotted the red haired woman chopping her blade down upon a Darkspawn’s neck, she sprinted to the scene and helped fend off what was left of the group.

With heavy breathing, Hawke’s group gathered around her as the newcomer assessed her husband’s state. Hawke stayed quiet, but Bethany spoke up from behind her, “just my luck – survive a hoard of those _things_ just to run into a templar.” She sighed lowly, and Hawke eyed him up – the uniform alone was a plague to their family.

The female looked to Hawke, who she addressed only because she thought her the leader, before glancing back at her husband. “Dear, they saved us,” she looked to the male, “I’m sure we can make an exception,” she spoke lowly, but he stepped forward – his gaze locking with Hawke’s glare as she too stepped in front of her sister.

“The order dictates…” he responded, just as sternly, not backing down in Hawke’s threatening presence. Carver followed her but did not surpass her, acting as an extra guard for Bethany. Aveline put a hand on her companions shoulder, squeezing lightly.

“We’ve been fighting Darkspawn since Ostagar…we don’t need to fight humans too. Especially those who aid us,” she spoke gently, and the man responded by going back to her side. She kept a tight hold on his arm, keeping him steady as she looked at Hawke, who retreated back to her own group. “I’m Aveline Vallen, this is my husband Wesley.”

“You’ve come from Ostagar?” Carver interjected, looking somewhat hopeful before realizing what that meant, “we’ve come from Lothering – if both sides are overrun…all that’s left is the Wilds…” He glanced at his family. None of them spoke or looked back, Bethany stared at the ground and Hawke kept her eyes on Aveline. Carver looked back to their new acquaintances, “is it true about the king?”

Aveline dropped her gaze for a second and nodded, “I’m afraid so – Ferelden has no heir, Anora is ruling alone as far as we know,” She sighed, the whole situation was a mess. She knew too that the horde was going to be on top of them soon – coming from both sides.

Hawke finally decided that the talk was over, “we need to keep moving, and as long as the Templar knows I stand with my sister, I don’t mind you joining us.” She spoke in a very matter of fact way, and Aveline nodded, understanding the conditions.

They moved on, fighting off clusters of Darkspawn as they progressed. It was difficult to protect Wesley, whose health was failing as they walked, and their mother who stayed close behind Bethany. Once they moved to a clearing, after collecting some scraps of goodies to create new weapons and repair their armor later, they decided to figure out where to go from there. Hawke lead the discussion by eliminating options, “the wilds is dangerous, Lothering is gone, and so is Ostagar.”

“Kirkwall – my parents had an estate there, we can get a boat and go there!” Leandra chimed, smiling softly. She had completely forgotten about her estate in the Marches, “Uncle Gamlen can take us in until we are able to get on our feet.” She added. The group looked at each other and Hawke finally nodded in agreement. She opened her mouth to speak, but the ground under her feet began to shake.


End file.
